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Pneumonia fills the lung's alveoli with fluid, hindering oxygenation. The alveolus on the left is normal, whereas the one on the right is full of fluid from pneumonia. Pneumonia frequently starts as an upper respiratory tract infection that moves into the lower respiratory tract. [54] It is a type of pneumonitis (lung inflammation). [55]
Respiratory sounds, also known as lung sounds or breath sounds, are the specific sounds generated by the movement of air through the respiratory system. [1] These may be easily audible or identified through auscultation of the respiratory system through the lung fields with a stethoscope as well as from the spectral characteristics of lung sounds. [2]
Normally, the sound of the patient's voice becomes less distinct as the auscultation moves peripherally; bronchophony is the phenomenon of the patient's voice remaining loud at the periphery of the lungs or sounding louder than usual over a distinct area of consolidation, such as in pneumonia.
A dull, muffled sound may replace resonance in conditions like pneumonia or hemothorax. Hyper-resonance: Very loud, very low pitch, and longer in duration. Abnormal. [14] Hyper-resonance can result from asthma or emphysema; Tympany: Loud and high pitched. Common for percussion over gas-filled spaces. [14] Tympany may result in pneumothorax. [15]
Whispered pectoriloquy refers to an increased loudness of whispering noted during auscultation with a stethoscope on the lung fields on a patient's torso. [1]Usually spoken sounds of a whispered volume by the patient would not be heard by the clinician auscultating a lung field with a stethoscope.
Egophony (British English, aegophony) is an increased resonance of voice sounds [1] heard when auscultating the lungs, often caused by lung consolidation and fibrosis.It is due to enhanced transmission of high-frequency sound across fluid, such as in abnormal lung tissue, with lower frequencies filtered out.
In 2016, the European Respiratory Society reported on a study of various physicians listening to audiovisual recordings of auscultation findings and interobserver variation was analyzed. [11] The study found that broad descriptions agreed better than detailed descriptions. [11]
Common physical exam findings of pneumonia include low blood pressure, elevated heart rate, elevated respiratory rate, and low oxygen saturation. Auscultation of the lungs may reveal decreased breath sounds, dullness to percussion, increased resonance, and crackles at the site of pneumonia. [5]